October 26

I know that it will hurt, I know that it will break your heart, the way things are, and the way they've been. Don't spread the discontent, don't spread the lies, don't make the same mistakes with your own life. ~ "Break Your Heart" by Natalie Merchant (born 26 October 1963)

Strategy is a system of expedients; it is more than a mere scholarly discipline. It is the translation of knowledge to practical life, the improvement of the original leading thought in accordance with continually changing situations. ~ Helmuth von Moltke the Elder

The greatest achievements of men, were at first, nothing but dreams of the minds of men who knew that dreams are the seedlings of all achievements. A burning desire, to be and to do, is the starting point, from which the dreamer must take off.

Andrew Wiles gently smiles,
Does his thing, and voila!
Q.E.D., we agree,
And we all shout hurrah!
As he confirms what Fermat
Jotted down in that margin,
Which could've used some enlargin'.
~ Tom Lehrer in That's Mathematics (Fermat's Last Theorem proof published that day)

3 Kalki 22:33, 16 October 2008 (UTC) with a very strong lean toward 4, but would correct this from the paraphrase to:

No plan of operations extends with any certainty beyond the first contact with the main hostile force.

OR extend it further to:

The tactical result of an engagement forms the base for new strategic decisions because victory or defeat in a battle changes the situation to such a degree that no human acumen is able to see beyond the first battle. In this sense one should understand Napoleon's saying: "I have never had a plan of operations."
Therefore no plan of operations extends with any certainty beyond the first contact with the main hostile force.

Though the original suggestion was originally unsourced, and seems to be a long used and common paraphrase, the original statement has now been sourced, and is included as part of my rankings, above. ~ Kalki 14:58, 18 October 2009 (UTC)

A competent staff officer should work diligently, accomplish much, remain in the background, and be more than he seems. ~ Helmuth von Moltke the Elder

To talk to others who are unseen and far away is an experience which, before the telephone, occurred only in mythology. Gods, devils, and angels talked from the sky across the world, but not mere mortals. ~ Ithiel de Sola Pool

0 because it is inadequately sourced. InvisibleSun 23:07, 25 October 2008 (UTC)

Whatever the mind of man can conceive and believe, it can achieve. Thoughts are things! And powerful things at that, when mixed with definiteness of purpose, and burning desire, can be translated into riches. ~ Napoleon Hill (dob)

The greatest achievements of men, were at first, nothing but dreams of the minds of men who knew that dreams are the seedlings of all achievements. A burning desire, to be and to do, is the starting point, from which the dreamer must take off.

There is one tradition in America I am proud to inherit. It is our first freedom and the truest expression of our Americanism: the ability to dissent without fear. It is our right to utter the words, "I disagree."

doctors have come from distant cities
just to see me
stand over my bed
disbelieving what they're seeing
they say I must be one of the wonders
of god's own creation
and as far as they can see they can offer
no explanation

O, I believe
fate smiled and destiny
laughed as she came to my cradle
know this child will be able
laughed as she came to my mother
know this child will not suffer
laughed as my body she lifted
know this child will be gifted
with love, with patience and with faith
she'll make her way